Friday, June 26, 2015

Rock those Brushes! Firing up Two New Murals...

After several weeks of negotiating, work has commenced with a vengeance on the two murals for Saskatchewan Government Employees' Union (SGEU). The "negotiating" part involved hashing out what and who specifically would end up being featured in the murals. There were quite a few considerations with this. First and foremost, all of the characters needed to be relevant and topical.

Second, there had to be an "aesthetic" sensitivity to the entire layout. (My job to ensure this!)

I decided to build a temporary frame, to hold the panels, in our back yard.

I suspect that the main reason why my submission to SGEU to undertake this (fairly ambitious) project in the first place was approved out of twenty-six "serious proposals" was mainly due to my mural-painting portfolio. My working portfolio clearly telegraphs the fact that my career has been built on murals. In my case, it is not so much "wishful thinking", as proof positive that I have both the experience and credentials to carry it off.

Like this.

Having dealt successfully with all of these concerns (and more), I was delighted to get a positive green light to go ahead, and have now splashed on the first...um...five or so glazes.

Once the layout was lightly sketched on the primed panels, I was eager to start painting.

You can imagine, after looking at the sketches for the past few weeks, I was very happy to start actually painting. Put another way, I was biting at the bit! Without any more hesitation, I dove straight into painting. There is not a lot of guesswork here. I have pretty much nailed down the technique now, after so much painting leading up to this project.

By the end of the first, long day of painting, I had pretty much completed the first two glazes.

One of the most exciting things about this technique is that we get to see the entire surface area virtually "come to life" simultaneously. I will not "micro-manage" a certain area...because that would not be the best approach to mural-painting. Rather, it all...paradoxically, gets painted at once, if you get what I mean.I was happy to find out today that there is a dedicated portal on the www that will feature regular updates on this project. It's really well conceived. Check it out here.

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About Me

I love my job! I am on a full-time, life-long painting adventure that has taken me across the great country of Canada to create more than 60 large murals. My wife Sharon Gibson and I have lived and worked at the Resort Village of Manitou Beach in Central Saskatchewan (in Canada for anyone with a sketchy knowledge of North American geography) for 18 years. In the spring of 2010 we established "Gibson and Gaudet's Gallery & Gifts" (G'G's Gallery & Gifts) as an extension of our home here. We are in the process of establishing the business here and are interested in hosting a variety of shows with guest artists.

Specialties

Meticulously researched murals of almost any description, size and material(s) with an emphasis on professional quality paints and technique are a fave. I also enjoy easel painting with acrylics on canvas with a focus on landscapes, portraiture and historic renderings of Manitou Beach.